For generations of Canadians, cursive handwriting was something that was taught in school, typically in the primary grades. During these lessons, children would spend time carefully crafting the loops and curves that make up the letters in the cursive alphabet.

However, it appears that fewer Canadian schoolchildren are learning the skill, as many classrooms now appear to be foregoing the lessons altogether, says occupational therapist Lindsay Amey.

"In Canada, it certainly seems to be hit or miss," she told CTVNews.ca, noting that there is little consistency across the board. "It seems to be largely dependent on whether the teacher plans to teach it explicitly."

And while it may seem unnecessary to provide children instruction on cursive writing, especially in today's digital age, Amey says research shows learning handwriting has benefits.

In particular, she says that cursive writing can improve brain development in the areas of thinking, language and working memory. As well, it can help reinforce reading and spelling skills, she said.

A 2014 review examined the advantages of taking notes in class with a laptop computer versus writing out notes.

In three different studies, the researchers found that students who took notes on laptops performed worse on conceptual questions compared to students who took notes by hand.

"We show that whereas taking more notes can be beneficial, laptop note takers' tendency to transcribe lectures verbatim rather than processing information and reframing it in their own words is detrimental to learning," the researchers concluded.

As well, Amey said, cursive handwriting can help kids focus more due to the "flow" and "unique connections" between the letters.

"It actually sustains your attention more, and commits what you've written by hand to memory better," she said. This results in students who are able to better retain concepts, she added.

Amey, who is also a national presenter with the organization Handwriting without Tears, said that even though computer skills are critically important for schoolchildren to learn, they still need the skills to form letters correctly. In fact, they need both skill sets, she said.

"What we know is that the kids who are most successful have skills in using technology and keyboarding, and also have skills in either printing or handwriting," she told CTVNews.ca.

"The primary tool in primary classrooms is still a pencil… kids still need to learn how to hold their pencil and how to make their letters."

Advertisements

Latest Canada & World News

A large number of deer are dying while trying to cross a New Brunswick river covered in thin ice. The deer are attempting to get to a deer yard where they spend most of their winter, but many aren’t surviving the Northwest Miramichi River crossing.
Source

An Eastern Ontario mother who was out walking when a vehicle hit her infant daughter’s stroller, wants the driver to turn himself in to authorities. The incident happened in Kemptville, Ont., near Ottawa on Tuesday.
Source

A man wanted for killing a Georgia police officer and wounding another was found dead Thursday, apparently fatally shooting himself before a SWAT team stormed a home where a tipster reported the suspect was hiding.
The manhunt for 32-year-old Minquell Lembrick ended a day after a gunman killed Americus police Officer Nicholas Smarr and critically wounded Officer Jody Smith of Georgia Southwestern State University.
Source

Layla El-Azzi’s letter to Santa Claus wasn’t a wish list filled with items such as a new bike, or clothes or the latest toy even. In fact, it wasn’t a list at all. The nine-year-old girl had one simple request for Saint Nick this year – to end the dispute between Nova Scotia’s government and the province’s public school teachers.
Source

U.S. president-elect Donald Trump named fast-food executive Andy Puzder to head the Department of Labor on Thursday, drawing criticism from labour advocates worried about his opposition to a higher minimum wage and government regulation of the workplace.
Source

Members of the Simon Fraser University swim team shed their coats and kicked off their boots as they went “swimming” on a snow covered football field. Donning only speedos and goggles, the group of swimmers dove into the shin-deep snow – unusual for Burnaby, B.C.
Source

NEW YORK — A British man flew his girlfriend all the way across the pond to New York City so he could propose to her at the firehouse used in the “Ghostbusters” franchise.
Wearing a hard hat and safety vest, Giles Baugh dropped to one knee at Ladder 8 in Tribeca and asked Melissa Ward to marry him.
Source

Airlines could let passengers make in-flight phone calls using Wi-Fi under a proposal from federal regulators.
Flight attendants and others have complained that the calls could be disruptive. But the Department of Transportation said Thursday that it envisioned allowing the calls if airlines tell all customers about the policy when they buy their tickets.
Source

PARIS - Both the rat and Nadine Mahe des Portes panicked when she inadvertently stepped on the rodent on her walk back from work through Paris. "I heard a terrible squeak," the property agent recalled with a shudder.
Source